With the current roster the Boston Celtics will compete and make a run this year. Rondo, Green, Ko, Sullenger, and one of the shooters, are an excellent start back to the playoffs. Everyone is forgetting about Green, the guy played very well last year in the playoffs. Rondo is a star. Sullinger and KO are a very interesting combination, and will produce points and will spread the floor, the guys are young but good. Our Bench as Now Constituted is one of the better if not the best bench in the NBA. We now have a real coach who will not let good players rot on the bench. Pressey appears to be the best backup point guard we have had in quiet a while. This guy , the indestructable man, can at least add toughness and rebounding and a few points. All we lost was three aging stars that are over the hill, as far as carrying a team in the regular season. I don't know what kind of a playoff team we will be but WE SHOULD BE COMPETATIVE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON , and who could ask for more during our first year without the big three. There is little doubt that at this time we are a better regular season team than we were last year if Rondo plays.

With the current roster the Boston Celtics will compete and make a run this year. Rondo, Green, Ko, Sullenger, and one of the shooters, are an excellent start back to the playoffs. Everyone is forgetting about Green, the guy played very well last year in the playoffs. Rondo is a star. Sullinger and KO are a very interesting combination, and will produce points and will spread the floor, the guys are young but good. Our Bench as Now Constituted is one of the better if not the best bench in the NBA. We now have a real coach who will not let good players rot on the bench. Pressey appears to be the best backup point guard we have had in quiet a while. This guy , the indestructable man, can at least add toughness and rebounding and a few points. All we lost was three aging stars that are over the hill, as far as carrying a team in the regular season. I don't know what kind of a playoff team we will be but WE SHOULD BE COMPETATIVE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON , and who could ask for more during our first year without the big three. There is little doubt that at this time we are a better regular season team than we were last year if Rondo plays.

With the current roster the Boston Celtics will compete and make a run this year. Rondo, Green, Ko, Sullenger, and one of the shooters, are an excellent start back to the playoffs. Everyone is forgetting about Green, the guy played very well last year in the playoffs. Rondo is a star. Sullinger and KO are a very interesting combination, and will produce points and will spread the floor, the guys are young but good. Our Bench as Now Constituted is one of the better if not the best bench in the NBA. We now have a real coach who will not let good players rot on the bench. Pressey appears to be the best backup point guard we have had in quiet a while. This guy , the indestructable man, can at least add toughness and rebounding and a few points. All we lost was three aging stars that are over the hill, as far as carrying a team in the regular season. I don't know what kind of a playoff team we will be but WE SHOULD BE COMPETATIVE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON , and who could ask for more during our first year without the big three. There is little doubt that at this time we are a better regular season team than we were last year if Rondo plays.

That may be one of the WORST benches in the NBA. Pressey hasn't proven a thing, Crawford and Brooks are both incredibly unreliable and notorious for taking terrible shots, Bogans is old and has never been a high level player, Lee, Wallace, and Hump are all coming off terrible years, Fav who knows, but his biggest knock is that he is really lazy, Fab is terrible, Olynyk is a bright spot but still a rookie with question marks.

Plus KG had one of the highest +/- stats in the league last year! Paul dragged that team through the whole second half of the season on his back.

You may not like KG or Paul, but to say they were dragging the team down is a falsity.

Thank You!! Pound for pound we may have a stronger and bigger lineup than last year. Under the assumption they keep Wallace, I can't figure out why the doom and gloom. Terry was terrible as a whole last year and is getting older and Pierce in no way shape or form was prepared to take on the work load needed from his position. We definately need some of these guys to step up as "shooters" to spread the defense, but youthful talent and speed, along with a coach that can exploit it is an exciting combination.

Sorry to the tank theorists, this will be the team nobody actually wants this year....to good for next year's draft, but not good enough for a championship. To those fans I say "just enjoy watching the games the way it was intended, for the entertainment"

With the current roster the Boston Celtics will compete and make a run this year. Rondo, Green, Ko, Sullenger, and one of the shooters, are an excellent start back to the playoffs. Everyone is forgetting about Green, the guy played very well last year in the playoffs. Rondo is a star. Sullinger and KO are a very interesting combination, and will produce points and will spread the floor, the guys are young but good. Our Bench as Now Constituted is one of the better if not the best bench in the NBA. We now have a real coach who will not let good players rot on the bench. Pressey appears to be the best backup point guard we have had in quiet a while. This guy , the indestructable man, can at least add toughness and rebounding and a few points. All we lost was three aging stars that are over the hill, as far as carrying a team in the regular season. I don't know what kind of a playoff team we will be but WE SHOULD BE COMPETATIVE DURING THE REGULAR SEASON , and who could ask for more during our first year without the big three. There is little doubt that at this time we are a better regular season team than we were last year if Rondo plays.

My biggest concern will be defense. KG was the heart and soul of the Celtic defense and to me I don't think they addressed the concern about rebounding. but for some strange reason Wallace and humphries can pick up the slack that's fine. To me sullinger though a nice rebounder is under sized playing center. Time will tell. At least they are getting younger and for me to make the 7th or 8th seed with a young team instead of an aging team, it's a step in the right direction.

My biggest concern will be defense. KG was the heart and soul of the Celtic defense and to me I don't think they addressed the concern about rebounding. but for some strange reason Wallace and humphries can pick up the slack that's fine. To me sullinger though a nice rebounder is under sized playing center. Time will tell. At least they are getting younger and for me to make the 7th or 8th seed with a young team instead of an aging team, it's a step in the right direction.

I like your post. It makes some sense in some areas. Disagree about the strongest bench and the jury MUST remain out on Pressly and KO until the real business of NBA is on us. I do take the point that we won't be jumping up and down willing Doc to try a young guy on the floor.

Rondo will be held back. It's a tanking year. Crawford needs serious work. I have higher hopes for Brooks as I think he has shown flashes of a player he can be on a consistent basis. Individuals in this team will flourish. Sully will find his feet. AB will play healthy. KO will get his chance to leave it all on the floor. As will Fav. A lot of this team, bench and coaching staff are starting off on a learning curve. Good things will happen but not as a team and not in the wins column. Players will simply find themselves and hit their groove at different times.

GW might have his redemption year- who knows. Who knows whether he'll have that in a Cs uniform. At the end of the day we don't have the intense veteran glue and the consistent shooters outside of Green to log some game changing moments on a consistent basis. You'll see a lot of wild fluctuations this season. Our best hopes is that our best prospects grow and get NBA hardened (coach included) for the real run next sesaon.

Big IF here. IF Rondo and Sully come back and stay healthy, then a Young nuclues of Rondo, AB, Green, Sully, KO, Lee, Brooks, and FAV has the Potential to run and put some points on the board. They are short a legitimate starting Center. Not a superstar mind you, but a Asik type.

Now throw the experience of GW, Bass, Bogans, Humphries and you have depth. The problem is still starting C. If it were me, I'd trade for Asik. Give up Bass and AB.

Asik/Humphries/FAV

Sully/KO

Green/GW

Lee/Brooks/Bogans

Rondo/Pressey

Scrubs

Crawford

FAB

Randolph

That is a 4-7 seed team in the playoffs this year, with the potential to get better over time.

We lost many games last year because we were last or close to it in rebounds. We needed play great defense, cause turnovers & shoot 45-50% to make up for -5,-10 etc. in rebounds.

OK, our defense and shooting % is not predicted to be as good but if we can with Sully and KO(and Melo too perhaps) be +5 or +10 in rebounds, those 2nd chances can make a 40% shooting team win games. Hate to bring up old wounds but Lakers beat us in 2010 because of the rebounding advantage after Perkins went down with Gasol & Bynum as the team only shot 32% and the guy who walks on water in LA was only 6 for 24(25%). Oops,hard to forget that the 41 to 18 egregious difference in foul shots with 21 for LA just in the 4th qtr made a difference too !!!

We lost many games last year because we were last or close to it in rebounds. We needed play great defense, cause turnovers & shoot 45-50% to make up for -5,-10 etc. in rebounds.

OK, our defense and shooting % is not predicted to be as good but if we can with Sully and KO(and Melo too perhaps) be +5 or +10 in rebounds, those 2nd chances can make a 40% shooting team win games. Hate to bring up old wounds but Lakers beat us in 2010 because of the rebounding advantage after Perkins went down with Gasol & Bynum as the team only shot 32% and the guy who walks on water in LA was only 6 for 24(25%). Oops,hard to forget that the 41 to 18 egregious difference in foul shots with 21 for LA just in the 4th qtr made a difference too !!!

KO is not a great rebounder. 7 per game in college. Sully is undersized and will be asked to play the center position. Faverani is notoriously lazy on the boards. And Melo probably won't be able to hang in the NBA next year. Unless traded Humphries will help there.

This team is a better rebounding team than last year, and especially without Doc. But that isn't saying much. They definately aren't an elite rebounding team either, if that's what you are banking on.

If the Cs avoid major injuries and they establish team chemistry, they could win games in the mid to upper 30's. Probably good for 9th seed in the East (just missing the playoffs).

There will be two dissapointed camps at the end of the season: Those that expects them to make a run in the playoffs, and those that expects them to draft Wiggins (good luck with that).

Danny will probably keep most of this present core and give Rondo a chance to make this team his team, now that the big three is gone. Sorry nay-sayers of Rondo, but it looks like Danny and Company are going that route.

We will be a very poor team this year. We have no idea when Rondo will suit up, if at all. KO has played exactly 0 nba minutes, who knows how he will be. We have no legitimate nba center. We have some interesting young talent to evaluate. We will take our lumps this year and lose 50 to 60 games, which is ok. We had a great run, it is ok to have a down year, and we have lots of young talent, picks, and money coming off the books. Have a little patience.

Can't see them winning less than 32 games unless they trade away Rondo, Avery, Green, and Courney Lee (probably won't happen) and Sullinger gets another season ending injury (I hope that won't happen). And Olynyk is a total flop (anything is possible, but I wouldn't bet on it. If he's going to be a flop, there should have been plenty of signs in the summer league).

BTW, cudos to those who think tanking is idiotic. Not only is it immoral and illegal (if not, it should be), it also goes against the idea of having a professional team in the first place. Lastly, it NEVER works. Just look at the 1997 and 2007 seasons. Frankly I don't understand why some people pretend those "tanking" years never happened.